PRN: A National Treasure, Babe Ruth's 1924 Home Run Bat, Going to Auction

A National Treasure, Babe Ruth's 1924 Home Run Bat, Going to Auction

[08-November-2018]

MILWAUKEE, Nov. 8, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- In 1924 Babe Ruth hit his first home run of the season off a pitch thrown by Hall of Fame pitcher Walter Johnson. Â That Home Run Bat was signed at the end of the game and presented to high school senior Phil Grossman.

Grossman was the winner of a highly publicized year-long batting contest sponsored by the LA Herald.Â The winner received the exact bat used by "The Babe" to hit the first home run of the 1924 season.Â

The image of Ruth signing this 1924 Home Run Bat (shown here) is the only known image of Ruth autographing any bat in uniform.Â In addition to the photograph of Ruth signing the bat, there is a documented photo of Ruth crossing home plate after hitting the home run off Johnson. Â

There are dozens of pictures and articles in a scrapbook assembled by recipient Grossman.Â This priceless scrapbook is included with the bat at auction.

Grossman treasured the Babe Ruth Bat until his death in 1986. The bat then became the property of Grossman's nephew, Mike Robinson.Â Sadly, Robinson had the bat and scrapbook stolen in 1989 but after a 29-year search, the bat was recently located and returned to Robinson.Â Â

The importance of both Babe Ruth and Walter Johnson to baseball cannot be overstated.Â Both men were among the first six baseball players to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Babe Ruth's memorabilia is considered the "King of Collectibles."Â Seven (7) of the top fifteen (15) highest priced sports memorabilia items ever sold belonged to Babe Ruth.Â

The highest price ever paid for any piece of sports memorabilia was Babe Ruth's 1920 jersey, which sold at auction in 2012 for $4,415,000.Â

This bat is not only the most chronicled piece of sports memorabilia of all time, it also has the verification of the industry's top experts, receiving a GU10, the highest rating possible.Â

Although the reserve/opening bid for this bat is $3,000,000, collectors are already speculating that this Babe Ruth 1924 Home Run Bat will sell for more than the 1920 Babe Ruth jersey, making it the most valuable piece of sports memorabilia of all time.Â Â